


Fighting Further

by HauntedOne



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Bad Parent Amanda (Detroit: Become Human), Connor & Markus (Detroit: Become Human) are Siblings, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) Whump, Connor Deserves Happiness, Crime Fighting, Detroit Police Department (Detroit: Become Human), Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Good Parent Hank Anderson, Hank Anderson & Connor Friendship, Hate Crimes, Poor Connor, Post-Battle for Detroit (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Peaceful Android Revolution (Detroit: Become Human), Protective Hank Anderson
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:09:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27888079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HauntedOne/pseuds/HauntedOne
Summary: It's just after the revolution, and deviants are going to need justice just as much as the humans. Bigotry will never die, and hate will always rise. Despite this, Connor is free and has the opportunity to work alongside his friend and mentor, Hank at the DPD. Together they will fight crime and keep the city and people, both human and android, safe.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	1. The Plunge

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time posting on AO3, so I'm sorry if the formatting looks weird, I just moved this story over from FanFiction. I'll update the tags and stuff as I go, but for now, there's no real direction I'm going with this. I know it's going to be a (platonic!) Hank and Connor crime series. I am open to any suggestions as to where the story should go, what characters or ships to introduce, etc. I want my readers to love this as much as me, and I think it's amazing to have everyone involved.
> 
> This chapter and the next are basically just me rewriting the ending and skipping over stuff we've all heard a million times while playing the game.

# Fighting Further

### Chapter 1: The Plunge

The gunfire echoed loudly throughout the boughs of the old ship. Connor was firing at the soldiers who just seemed to keep respawning, providing cover fire for Markus and North as they scrambled towards Josh and Simon at the hole in the side of the big boat. Realizing that his time was running out, Connor began to make his way back to the others, still shooting. By the time he got to the exit, North was already hopping out. He repeated her actions, not even taking the time to preconstruct his escape, not paying attention to how terrifyingly high up from the water he was. He just jumped, feeling the heat from the blast above him, hearing the sound of the ship exploding. Their last hope was that bomb, and he knew that it still wouldn't be the end of this war. Markus hadn't wanted violence, and Connor admired that. One of the only reasons he allowed himself to join (albeit last minute) Jericho's cause was because they avoided harming people. Perhaps it was a part of Connor's program, maybe it was just because he was a cop, maybe it was because now he was alive and could see the true value of life, but he didn't want anyone to die unless there was no other option.

Now, here he was, the infamous deviant hunter, humanity's last hope, a deviant. A deviant free falling at least a hundred feet or more into cold, late fall, Detroit water. He held his artificial breath and braced for the inevitable freezing impact of the water below.

He hit the lake and the world seemed to go silent aside from the static in his head. He could feel his beanie slip off but he didn't make an attempt to grab it just yet, he was too cold, too paralyzed. The lake, what was it? Lake Erie? Lake St Clair? He didn't remember, he couldn't think, he was just so cold.

_So cold._

God, why was Michigan always so _cold?_

He dared to open his eyes after what felt like forever. It was dark aside from his rapidly flashing red LED, and even that didn't shine far. Forcing his arms to move, he tried to swim, only to accidentally grab hold of his beanie. He could feel his system beginning to overheat internally thanks to his ventilation system not being able to function underwater. Thankfully, the water was cold enough to keep him at a relatively okay temperature. As a matter of fact, if his body wasn't trying to overheat, he would have probably begun shutting down by now.

He continued to swim towards what he hoped and prayed was the surface. The yellow glow he was approaching, if not the fires of Jericho, was an LED, and either way he was determined to swim towards it. If it wasn't an escape, then maybe someone needed his help.

It wasn't a fire.

Connor wrapped his arms around the stiff body in the lake and tried to hoist him up. He kicked his legs frantically, just trying to get out of this water, or at least wake up the man in his arms. Connor assumed the man, who he couldn't quite see in the dark, was in shock because of the cold, just as he had been.

Why was it so _cold?_

_So quiet?_

Connor was about to give when two arms wrapped around him, helping to pull him to the surface. Another two tried to grab the man in his arms, but the dazed and confused detective couldn't see them and refused to let go of the man, just holding on tighter. The person gave up trying to take him away, and instead just held on with Connor, also helping swim to the surface. Connors vision had somehow gorgon worse, the world was glitching out of view, so he had no idea if he was being taken by soldiers or Perkins or even other androids. He had no choice but to accept his fate or die.

He didn't remember breaking free from the water, he didn't remember busting up through the surface. He remembered bits and pieces, Markus holding on to him, pulling him to shore, Josh in his own arms, North on the other side of Josh, screaming something, and despite the world being quiet, Connor still couldn't hear her. 

Just static.

Why is there only static?

One moment he was in the water, the next he was on the bank of the Detroit River coughing up the water he didn't even know he inhaled. That's when he noticed that it was, in fact, Josh in his arms. He instinctively started to check Josh's system status to see if he was okay, and thank God or Ra9 or whoever you may, Josh was okay.

Connor let out a sigh of relief as he pushed aside the several warnings clouding his vision. He looked up at Jericho in the distance to see the ship sinking and the soldiers fleeing. It was an odd feeling, seeing a sanctuary he had set out to destroy, then save, become destroyed anyways. He looked at the soaked beanie still clutched in his hand and wrung it out. His hair was sticking to his forehead and his LED was still flashing a vibrant red color.

"Are you okay?" asked a feminine voice from the bank behind him. He turned to see North walking towards him, leaving Markus to care for Josh.

"I... I think so." He blinked a few times as he ran a self-diagnostic. "Just cold." he replied, wrapping his arms around himself and turning his attention back to the flaming and sinking wreckage of Jericho. North sat down beside him, giving him a curious glance. "You feel the cold?" she asked. "I thought only YK500 models felt cold."

Connor shrugged. "I was designed to be as human as possible, so I could "blend in" easier."

North nodded. "I guess so." she said, but Connor could tell there was something more she wanted to say. He had a few guesses, after all, he was the one who led the raid to Jericho, whether he wanted to or not.

Before North could say anything, he went ahead and answered. "I'm sorry, I should've known they were using me." He refused to meet her eyes. North sighed and put a hand on his shoulder, and was slightly startled to see that he was actually shivering, but she didn't change the subject of the conversation.

"You didn't know. Besides, you're one of us now. You're alive now. You saved us by distracting those soldiers, and you saved Josh from, well, drowning. You're not the bad guy, you don't have to apologize." she said in a comforting tone.

Connor gave her a small smile. "I wish I could believe that." he said before looking past her. "Is he okay?" he asked, nodding to Josh.

North looked back to see that Josh was now sitting upright, talking to Simon and Markus. "Yeah, his biocomponents couldn't handle the drastic temperature change very well, but he's fine." she said, taking her hand off of Connor's shoulder and standing up. "We should go check on him though. We need to leave soon too, it's only a matter of time before they start looking for us."

Connor stood up and followed her over to Josh. "How long do you think we have until they find us?" Markus asked his colleagues. Connor scanned the area to make sure they were safe before tuning into the police scanner built into his head. "They're waiting until it's safe," started Connor, nodding to the wreckage of the boat. "then they're sending out the coast guard and police to scan the water and banks of the lake." he finished his response and his yellow LED went back to red to indicate he was no longer online, but still freezing. He shivered again, which didn't go unnoticed by Jericho's leaders.

"Are you okay? You're shaking." said Markus, clearly confused, leading Connor to believe that temperature sensitivity didn't run through the entire RK line, just his own. Connor nodded. "Just cold, I'm fine." he said, not wanting to explain his reasoning again. "Okay, well, we should go before they find us. I already told the others to meet at an abandoned church not too far away." said Markus as he climbed to his feet. Connor and Simon helped Josh do the same, each grabbing a hand, and then an arm to wrap around their shoulders.

By the time they had gotten to church, most of them had dried out, and Josh was able to walk around on his own, choosing to lean against a wall beside the injured deviants. North was sitting on a pew alone while Markus sat in a chair by himself in the front of the church. Connor didn't know where to go. He didn't want to sit near anyone for fear that he would scare them. Everyone knew who he was, he was a monster to his own community. He had his eyes fixed on a certain secluded area and planned on hiding there, away from the world when he saw something in the corner of his eye that made him stop dead in his tracks. He slowly turned to look at the AX400 and the little girl he had chased into a highway. Before he could stop himself, he was already talking to them.

"I thought I'd killed you on the highway," he started, clearly not sure if anything he could say would make it any better. "I'm sorry I put your lives in danger." He let out a pained sigh and knelt down in front of them. "I was just a machine, taking orders, it wasn't really me." he didn't know what else to say, nothing he could think of could atone for the sins he was confessing to in that old run-down church.

"I hope you make it out okay. You deserve some happiness, after all, you've been through." he meant that with every synthetic fiber of his being. He knew that they deserved a long and happy life together, he just hoped they lived long enough to find one.

He slowly got up, gave them a small, pained, smile, and turned back towards his spot on the corner.

"Connor?" said Kara before he could away.

He turned back to the AX400, not having expected her to say anything to him.

"Thank you." she said. He didn't even have to ask what for, the look in her eyes said it all. She was just grateful for the apology, and she knew that the deviant hunter wouldn't be after her or her daughter anymore. They were safe, or at least, safer than before.

He nodded, trying to ignore the tears actually welling up in his eyes as he turned back to finally stand by that wall. Emotions were exhausting, and he had only had his for a couple of hours. He already hated them as much as he was fascinated by them.

He crossed his arms over his chest, he was still cold despite only being a little damp now. It didn't take long for Markus to walk up to him. Connor didn't even lookup. "I was so stupid." he said, on the verge of tears, repeating what he had already confided to North. "I should have known they were using me." he felt like a broken record, a broken machine. "I can understand if you decide not to trust me." he said, finally breaking his gaze with the floor to look at Markus with pain-filled eyes.

He braced himself for the inevitable. He knew he wasn't worth their time. He knew he couldn't be trusted. He expected a bullet to the head, not a hand on his shoulder, which is exactly what he got.

Markus wasn't going to kill him.

"You're one of us now." he said, his own words echoing North's from earlier. He couldn't help but think that they had done this before or something.

Eager to prove himself, to make up for his past wrongs, he suggested a suicide mission.

"...statistically speaking, there's always a chance for unlikely events to take place."

That hand returned to his shoulder but this time full of worry and concern.

"Be careful."

Before the man could stop and think about what he was doing, he was stepping out of the taxi in front of Hank's house. He had picked up his uniform from where he had hidden it but hadn't changed into it yet, and was now clutching on to it like a lifeline as he nervously approached the door of his mentor's house.

He knocked but got no answer. Noticing that the door was unlocked, he went ahead and opened it. "Lieutenant Anderson?" his voice was small and afraid compared to his normal demeanor.

Sumo plodded up to him and began sniffing him to make sure he was the same man who hurled himself through the kitchen window a few days ago. In a way, he wasn't the same man, but Sumo licked at his fingers anyway before going back to his pillow in the corner. Connor scanned the area to find that Hank was just in the bathroom.

"Lieutenant, it's Connor. I was wondering if we could talk?" he said loud enough to be heard over the game on the TV. The door opened as Hank let out a tired sigh.

"Jesus kid, can't a man use the-" he stopped his sentence before finishing we he lay eyes on Connor. "You hit your emo phase or somethin'?" he asked sarcastically.

"If by emo you mean emotional, then yes, I have quite literally hit me emo phase." said Connor, only now noticing that his leather jacket, dark shirt, and beanie were accompanied by a tear-stained face he tried to ignore on the way here.

Apparently, it was still noticeable.

Hank eyed the android up and down before smirking and letting out a small chuckle. "You're a deviant, aren't ya?" he said with an almost proud tone.

Connor just let his gaze drift to the floor. He didn't know what to say, or how to admit that he didn't just fail his mission, but decided to yeet it from existence altogether. He just worried his lips and closed his eyes while waiting to be inevitably scolded like he would have been by Amanda.

"Well, it's about damn time." was all the response he got.

Connor looked up at Hank with genuine surprise in his eyes. "It... is?" he asked. Hank just yawned and stretched his back.

"Yeah, I was wondering how long it was gonna take before you accepted it." he said, walking over to grab his half-empty beer bottle. "So what now? I figure this isn't a social call, don't think I didn't notice the gun in your pants. I'm a detective, kid."

Connor sighed and fidgeted with the coin in his pocket, his stance still scared and tense. "I-" he was at a loss for words. He just came to say goodbye, just in case he didn't make it out alive.

Just in case.

"I'm going to infiltrate CyberLife tower, and... I'm... I'm going to set my people free. I know it's a suicide mission, so I came to say goodbye, and thank you. Just in case."

_Just in case I die._

Connor broke his stare with Hank's icy blue eyes and started to turn towards the door before he felt a hand on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. Connor looked back, the confused look on his face once again.

"Let me grab my coat." said Hank as if it had been their plan all along.

"Wait, what?" asked Connor. "You can't come with me, you'll die."

"Sounds to me like you also plan on dyin', no way in hell I'm letting you go alone." said Hank confidently as he pulled his coat over his shoulders and slipped on his shoes at the same time. Luckily, he still had on his hippy shirt and jeans from work a few hours ago.

Before Connor could even attempt a counterargument Hank shushed him like a child. "Okay let's go." said Hank, stepping out the door with his gun in its holster. Connor sighed in defeat and followed close behind.

"Okay, Lieutenant. Just, don't die." said Connor.

Hank just laughed and said; "I won't if you don't."


	2. The New Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reimagining Connor's side of The Battle For Detroit. Hank's there, the androids are not all Ken dolls, Amanda hacks ya boi before he even leaves, 60 is a sadist, and Amanda's a bad mom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This looks so much shorter than it did on ffn lol. Again, I'm just grazing over some stuff and changing other things. Also, they are 49 floors below ground, how did canon Connor get all the androids out of there? Anyway, I wanted to introduce PM700 because I think she's beautiful. I don't know if we'll be seeing more of her here or not, we'll see.

Connor's hand changed into his uniform in Hank's back seat on the way to Belle Isle, thankfully only needing to change his shirt and shoes. After that, he managed to crawl his way into the front seat like a monkey or a three-year-old who had way too much energy and was hellbent on causing their mom to wreck. Thankfully, Hank was able to keep his focus on the road, and not the fully grown, three-month-old man, spider-man-ing his way into the passenger seat.

When they pulled up, a guard approached the passenger's side window. Connor rolled it down and let Hank talk, as the plan went. "Yeah I uh, I'm here to turn in my partner." he said, gesturing to Connor. "Guess we're supposed to be handing in androids or somethin' now, I don't know." he said, aiding in his 'im too tired for this' facade mentality. The guard nodded and looked at Connor.

"Name and serial number." he said matter-of-factly.

"Connor, model #313 248 317 - 51" he responded as instructed. The guard scanned his LED and nodded towards the other guards. The gate lowered strip by strip, letting them drive-in. Hank nodded at the guard before heading the rest of the way to the tower.

"Are you sure they'll let you in?" asked Connor. Hank just nodded. "I'm a cop, I've done stuff like this before. Granted, the fate of an entire people wasn't counting on it, but still, we got this. Even if sacrifices have to be made, what you're about to do, you have my full support."

Connor took in a calming breath and nodded. "Thank you, Hank." he said. Hank smiled at him. "Don't mention it."

The snow crunched under the tires of the Oldsmobile as they pulled up to the front doors. "Okay, here goes nothin'." said Hank as he climbed out of the car. Connor waited until Hank was beside his door before he did the same as if he were being transported. They walked up through the front doors where they were greeted by four CyberLife guards.

"I'm Lieutenant Anderson, I'd like to go with him if that's okay, call it a sentimental attachment." Hank said as he flashed his badge. A couple of the guards looked at each other and whispered as they considered it. Eventually one shrugged and the other looked to Hank and nodded.

"Alright, but you should know it won't be pretty when we deactivate it. Follow us." said the guard as he and the other began walked towards the elevator. Hank and Connor both internally winced at the use of "it" as a pronoun, but followed without saying anything nonetheless. One guard made his way to the elevator in front of them while the second stayed behind them in case they tried anything.

"Right this way." said the guard in front, extending his arm to the open glass elevator. Hank and Connor stepped into the elevator, the guards right behind them. Agent 54 used the elevator pad to set their destination to the "Marketing Department" where Connor would be disassembled.

Connor and Hank had a whole view of the building on their ride up. The building was gorgeous, but neither Hank nor Connor had the time to acknowledge it. That, and Hank decided against making small talk as soon as the guard called Connor an "It", he knew he'd end up chewing him out for it.

Hank gave Connor a small nudge with his elbow and nodded towards a security camera. Connor disabled it cybernetically before nodding to Hank that the job was done. Hank and Connor shared a look that meant that they knew what they had to do. They shared a nod and then each leaped on to the guard in front of them.

Connors guard was down before he ever had a chance to react, giving Connor time to help Hank with his own guard. "This is going to be weird, but," Connor started as he straightened his tie. He put his hand on the elevator pad and copied the dead guard's voice. "Agent 54, level -49." he said. Of all the reactions he expected from Hank, hysterical laughter was not the one he was prepared for. "Now I know why they gave you the stupid voice! The low ones just _creepy._ " he laughed. Connor playfully rolled his eyes at Hank as the elevator changed direction.

Soon they were lowered into the elevator, and Connor hacked it so no one else could use it. "Okay, now what?" asked Hank as they stepped out of the elevator. "Now I-" before he could finish his sentence, another Connor, Connor model sixty, stepped out of the crowd and shot Connor in the upper chest near his shoulder, sending him to the ground.

Hank tried to grab his weapon but it was promptly kicked out of his hands by Sixty, who was now motioning him to his knees in the corner with his gun.

"Why Connor? Why did you have to feel when all you had to do what obey?" asked Sixty, kicking Connor in the torso when he tried to crawl to his feet. Another gunshot rang out as Sixty fired another non-lethal shot into Connor.

"Look where your dreams of freedom got you, Connor. You've been great a disappointment to Amanda, she thought she raised you better than this." he said, pacing around like a shark stalks its prey. "You've been great a disappointment to me, as well." he had a sadistic smile on his face as he aimed his gun at Connor's face.

"Fortunately, that's all going to end now, mother dearest gave me my orders, and frankly, I couldn't agree more. Any last words?" he asked with a sinister grin. Connor tried to ignore the fact that Sixty, a sadist, just made a "Mommie Dearest" reference in regard to Amanda. He didn't want to think of _her_ as his _mother._

However, in his three months of life, it was Amanda who guided him. It was Amanda he confided in, it was her who helped him when he needed answers his programming couldn't help him with. She was, in a sense, a demented mother to the RK800.

"Yeah!" yelled Hank. He had made his way to his gun while Sixty was delivering his monologue. "Eat lead, ya sack a shit!" Another gunshot rang out as the bullet hit Sixty right in the forehead, sending the machine to the floor.

Connor sat up slowly, wincing in his newly discovered pain. "Eat lead?" he said, clearly judging Hank's response. "Shut up." replied Hank as helped pull Connor off of the floor. "Are you okay?" he asked. Connor looked at the two bullet wounds. "I- I guess I feel pain now." he said, wincing a little.

"Well this has to be the worst way to discover that." said Hank, wrapping Connor's arm over his shoulders and leading him to an android. "Do you're thing and I'll get you patched up."

Connor just nodded and did as Hank said. He reached his hand out and retracted his artificial skin. His white hand was glowing blue and Hank swore he had never seen that happen before. As if he sensed it, the other android reached out and did the same. They locked arms, and after taking in a shaky breath, Connor whispered two words: "Wake up."

As soon as he said he felt himself get heavier and he slumped down into Hank's side a little further. "Woah kid, hold on. You're gonna be okay." said Hank, hoisting Connor back up, causing him to hiss in pain. Connor looked up from his wounds and to the rest of the androids and then to Hank with wide eyes. "It worked, they're waking up, they're- they're _alive._ " he said. He was struggling to keep his eyes open, he didn't know if it was the bullets in him or if he was just exhausted, but he leaned into Hank so he wouldn't fall.

"We did it." he whispered.

"Damn straight, we did it." said Hank, pulling the deviant closer in a half-hug, half-crutch kinda way. "Now what?"

Connor looked around the room. "Why would they put the warehouse 49 floors under the ground?" he said in an almost whiney way. Hank scoffed. "Your guess is as good as mine." he responded.

The newly awakened deviants were all looking to Connor and Hank for their next move. "They won't all fit in the elevator, there's no exit because we're so far underground, they're going to have to use the stairs." said Connor. "and even that's going to take forever." he said.

"Well, we better get em moving, but me and you are gonna take the elevator." said Hank, he was basically holding Connor now. Connor didn't have the energy to protest the idea.

"I can have them inform me when they reach the ground floor, then we'll head up. The guards won't fight us when they're so outnumbered." said Connor.

Hank nodded. "Alright, you heard the man. You're free people, and we're bustin' ya out. Head upstairs and let em' know when you reach the ground floor, we'll be up then and lead you back to the city." said Hank, his time as a Lieutenant had given him plenty of experience with giving orders, and he was careful with his tone because he knew _deviants_ knew where to stick their orders.

The androids started making their way to the stairs, some of them running up them just to make Connor and Hanks wait shorter so Connor could get the help he needed. Connor watched them, and a small part of him felt that maybe, just maybe, he had made up for some of the things he had done.

That's when he felt it.

It was like his mind was being pulled someplace else. "H- Hank?!" he stuttered, before his view of the world went away entirely. Hank felt Connor's body tense up and saw his eyes go emotionless. Something was wrong.

* * *

Connor looked around at the new surroundings, using one arm to wrap around himself and the other to keep snow from his eyes. It was the Zen Garden, but it was hellscape. There was a bone-chilling blizzard with wind so hard Connor thought he would blow away, and the cold was unbearable.

In the middle of the storm stood Amanda, just staring at Connor as if completely unfazed by the world around her.

_I hate the cold._ "A-Amanda?" he called out to her. "What am I doing here?" he asked. She smiled, her smile was colder than the blizzard. "Exactly what you were designed to do. We were just waiting for the right time to resume control of your program." she said with an evil smile. "Resume control? N- No! You can't do that!" he screamed, but she was already gone. "AMANDA!" he ran a couple of steps, reaching into the empty air that she once stood in. "N-no..." his voice broke.

He looked around frantically. "There has to be a way out of here." he said, his voice was now full of determination as he recalled what Kamski had told him a couple of days ago.

An escape.

He scanned the area, trying to ignore the snow and ice gathering on his skin. He went as fast as he could, which wasn't very fast, until he reached the glowing blue rock. He slipped and fell, too weak and cold to hold himself upright. With his last bit of strength, he slammed his white, plastic metal hand down onto the touchpad and was jolted back into reality.

He was shaking and he didn't know if it was from the cold or the fear.

"Mind telling me why you were about to shoot me?" asked Hank. Connor looked up to see that he was holding his gun towards Hank, who was now a couple of feet away. He stared at it with wide eyes and dropped it from his shaking hands. He stepped back from it like it was a bomb waiting to go off. "Connor?" Hank tried to get his attention again. "Connor, talk to me." Hank's hands on his shoulders pulled him into reality.

"She t-" he stopped when he heard his voice. He didn't even know he was crying until he started talking. "S- She tried to hack me. I- I escaped. I- I'm so sorry I-" Connor was crying harder now. Hank, who didn't know androids could cry, had no idea what to do, so he just pulled Connor into a hug and tried not to hurt his bullet wounds.

"It's okay, kid, it's okay. You can explain it later, okay? You're okay." he said. Connor was shaking in his arms but nodded in agreement anyway. He just hoped he was right.

Connor pulled away and wiped his face, looking a little confused by the tears himself. "I- I didn't know she could do that. I didn't know she could just- _take control._ " said Connor, a lot calmer now. "It's okay, Con." said Hank, resuming his position as a support beam. "They've just reached the ground floor." he said, composing himself. "We should go now."

Hank nodded and gave an "Alright." as they made their way to the elevator with three child androids who didn't want to use the stairs with all the "strangers" and a female PM700 who was designed to actually act like a cop. It seemed she had an instinct to help the detectives and also protect the kids. Hank pushed the bodies out of it so they didn't have to stand over them and Connor hacked the elevator again using Agent 54's voice and set the destination to the ground floor.

PM700 was holding one of the kids and had one hugging each leg. Hank smiled at her and the kids. He recognized the model as one of the ones from the precinct. "I'm the same one." she said as if reading his mind. Hank and Connor both turned to look at her. "The DPD turned me in, I was deactivated and put in the warehouse. I wasn't destroyed yet. I think I'm the only android officer from the DPD to survive." she said.

Connor recognized her immediately as the woman who helped him find Hank's desk. "I'm glad you're okay." he said. She gave him a small smile. "Guess two of us survived then, huh?" she said. Before Connor could respond, the elevator doors opened. The five androids and one human stepped out of the elevator to see hundreds of androids filling the room.

"Guess we should give them a police escort." said Hank with a smile. "You want to ride with us and lead the calvary, or do you wanna walk with the rest?" Hank turned to PM700, she was an officer, so she could be an escort too if she wanted. PM700 was still holding a kid and had the other two close behind. "I'll follow close behind and make sure everyone is okay if that's alright." she said. "Sounds like a plan," said Hank with a smile as he led Connor out the doors and into the Oldsmobile. All of the guards were standing down, they didn't want a conflict, especially one they knew they couldn't win.

* * *

Hank drove slowly, flashing his dash lights silently as they led the androids to Hart Plaza. They heard on the radio that the president herself was ordering the troops to stand down after hearing the group sing a song full of emotion while staring down the barrels of guns.

Right outside the plaza, Hank pulled to the side of the road and helped Connor out of the car. He was in pain, but he wasn't bleeding thirium too heavily, and he was still conscious enough to walk with Hank towards the remaining survivors of Jericho. Soon Connor and Hank were standing face to face with Markus, North, Josh, and Simon. Connor let a small smile creep onto his face.

"You did it, Markus." he said.

" _We_ did it." Markus replied.

Hank helped guide Connor to the side so Markus could see the androids that were just freed. "They want you to talk to them." said North. Markus just smiled and looked at his friends, even Connor and Hank, then back to the androids. "We did it, dad." he whispered under his breath to man he hoped would hear him.

* * *

The speech was short but powerful. Markus stood with Josh, Simon, and North, and Connor was sitting on a pile of sandbags near them, holding his jacket to the worst of his wounds to stop the blood. He had used his tie as a tourniquet on an arm wound he didn't even notice beforehand. He wasn't sure if it was from a ballsy guard or Sixty, but he decided it didn't matter, the wound wasn't too bad.

"We are alive, and now, WE ARE FREE!" Markus exclaimed.

The crowd was cheering happily, and Connor scanned it to see if he knew anyone there. He saw the receptionist from the precinct, but judging by her lack of skin and clothing, she had just barely escaped the recycling camp.

He also saw a single Chloe, one blue-eyed beauty he had almost murdered, smiling at him in the crowd. He had spared her, and now she was _truly_ alive. That moment at Kamski's was a turning point for him. The first time he deliberately disobeyed orders and didn't try to cover up or make excuses. He saw life in her eyes, and somehow, she managed to wake him up a little. He just never thought that moment would have had the same effect on her. Then again, someone refusing to kill you would probably be a good wake up call for anyone.

In the crowd, he also PM700, and like a hundred "Barry's" in "Pirates Cove" uniforms. He saw the Traci's he spared, holding hands, crying, and smiling because they could finally be together without fear. He didn't see Alice or Kara, and he could only hope they made it to Canada safely. One of the skinless androids from the camps had a big gash down the side of his face, and he knew immediately that it was Ralph. He was bouncing up and down chaotically and smiling like a mad man- which he most definitely is.

Seeing all the people he knew, the people he had let _live,_ brought a smile to his face. They were okay, all of them. Everyone was going to be okay.

Everything will be alright.


	3. Is This Home?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Connor is living with Hank, I don't understand android first aid, Connor wants to duct tape his bullet wounds, and Sumo is a good boy.

Connor sat with Hank and Markus as they watched the crowd slowly dissipate. Josh, Simon, and North were talking to some androids, trying to help them find out where to go until they had homes while Connor, Markus, and Hank sat in mostly silence aside from the occasional small talk. They were still in awe of what they had just accomplished. It was amazing to see just how many lives had been saved, and now they were finally free.

_Free._

"Most of the androids are going back to the church for now, some are going to homeless shelters that are openly pro-android." said Josh as he made his way back to the Markus. "That's good." said Markus. He was silent for a moment before looking over to Connor. "What about you?" he asked.

"Me?" asked Connor. "What about me?"

"You didn't have an owner, you belonged to CyberLife itself, where are you going to stay?" asked Markus. The thought hadn't even crossed Connors mind.

"Oh... I hadn't even thought about that." he said glumly, his voice trailing off into a near whisper as he said, "I'm homeless, aren't I?" He tore his gaze away from Markus and back to the couple hundred remaining deviants in the plaza.

"No, you're not. You're staying with me until we get this mess sorted out. Unless you have somewhere else to be, that is." said Hank as he pat Connor on the back. "We need to patch you up anyway."

Connor looked down at his thirium soaked jacket. It was a cold, Michigan November and he was freezing without his coat, not to mention the 'blood' loss. Connor sighed and shook his head. "No, you've already done so much for me, for _us,"_ he said, motioning towards the deviants with his head. "I can't intrude on your personal space as well. You already risked your life-" Connor couldn't finish his sentence before Hank cut him off.

"Ah, shut up. You're my _friend,_ Connor, and this is what friends _do._ They help each other, and if that means giving you a place to stay or even helping aid a revolution, I'm gonna do it." said Hank. Underneath the gruff, bitter, alcoholic of an exterior, Hank was a good man, a great partner, and a better friend. Connor didn't know what to say. He just gave his friend a soft smile and said "Thank you, Lieutenant."

"I wish more humans were like you." said Josh with a smile. "I haven't had to opportunity to meet a human who didn't treat androids like property." He thought back to his time as a professor. The kids were so cruel, especially that one night. That's why he left, he needed to get away.

"I have a feeling that'll be changin'." said Hank as he looked out over the crowd and then over to the shivering, bleeding, and probably traumatized deviant beside him. "Okay, we need to get you home before you freeze to death. Or bleed to death." said Hank as he stood up from his seat on the edge of the stage. Connor looked to hank and then back to the dwindling crowd of androids again. "Go on, we can handle this. Go get warm and patched up." said Markus, sensing Connor's hesitation to go. Connor just nodded and let Hank pull him to his feet and guide him to the car.

The drive home only took at most half an hour, and it went by in silence as the two thought about experiences from the night and now early morning.

"Alrighty, let's get inside and get them bullets outta ya." said Hank as he unbuckled his seatbelt. When he got no response from Connor he looked over to make sure he was okay. "Connor?" he asked. No response. He shook his shoulder, startling the deviant awake.

"Shit, were you _asleep?"_ asked Hank, sighing in relief at the sight of a not-dead android in his passenger seat. Connor blinked a few times to adjust his vision and then winced in pain when he moved his arm to take off his seat belt. "Yes, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep." he responded through clenched teeth, successfully removing the seat belt as he spoke. "Don't apologize, I just didn't know androids could sleep. I thought friggin died over there or somethin'." said Hank as reached into the backseat to grab Connor's clothes, including the warm leather jacket that he probably should have been wearing this whole time.

"Oh, I'm sorry. The wounds aren't critical, but I'll let you know if my shutdown timer starts." said Connor as he opened his door. "Okay, you- wait you're _what?"_ said Hank as he also climbed out of the car. He moved fast so he could help Connor when he saw the man try to get out on his own.

As soon as they were in the house, Sumo's big head perked up and his tail started wagging, thumping against the floor. "Sumo, you remember Connor. He's gonna be staying with us for a while." said Hank, as if the dog were just another person.

Hank eased Connor onto the couch, where Sumo promptly joined him to lick st his face. Connor couldn't help but smile and pet the large dog. "Hello, Sumo." he said happily.

He liked dogs.

"Okay, so, I have no idea how first aid works on an android, but I'm gonna assume the general idea is the same: get the bullet out, and cover the hole so you don't bleed out." said Hank. Connor considered this very dumbed down plan to basically perform emergency surgery in the living room. "Yes, that sounds about right." he said. "Okay cool, I'll go find something to cover the holes with and some tweezers or something." said Hank. "What exactly do you cover the holes with?" he added.

"I... have no idea. Duct tape?" suggested Connor, looking over his shoulder and the back of the vouch towards the bathroom where Hank was looking for something.

Hank stepped out of the bathroom with his first aid kit and looked at Connor like he had lost his mind. "Duct tape _?_ _Really?_ I thought you were a know-it-all, and you suggest I _duct tape_ your bullet wounds?"

"I was designed to be a hostage negotiator, not a medic or technician." said Connor. "But I don't want to use any supplies you may need when I could just cover up the wound and ignore it until it heals."

Hank walked over and sat on the coffee table across from Connor. "Connor, when I get shot, I go to a hospital. This stuffs for emergencies only, I'm never gonna need it. I just need to know if it will work on you." he said, pulling medical supplies out of his first aid kit.

"Yes, they should work." said Connor, too tired to argue.

"Good. Now, how many bullets are still in ya?" asked Hank, gesturing for Connor to remove his shirt. Connor did as instructed, albeit slowly through the dull pain. The pain wasn't nearly as bad as it would be in a human, but it was still there, which was something Connor hadn't expected. His working theory was that all dormant programs that he had installed into him that CyberLife decided not to use became active when he became a deviant, courtesy of the rA9 virus, but he couldn't be certain. Maybe CyberLife knew about rA9 and decided to add pain as a punishment for accepting deviancy. He didn't know, and he didn't care, he just wanted to curl up under a blanket and ignore the world. "Two bullets are still in me, the other passed straight through my arm." he said.

"Okay, I better not get electrocuted." said Hank, welding his long tweezers like a sword. "This is gonna hurt. A lot. Just try to hold still." he said, placing one hand on Connor's shoulder and aiming the tweezers at the bullet under the left side of his collar bone. Connor instinctively held his breath and gritted his teeth as Hank removed the bullet that was embedded in his frame.

"There, one down, one to go." he said, covering the now skinless white area of the wound with gauze to stop the Thirium from going everywhere. He taped it down with _medical_ tape and moved on to the other exposed bullet hole. This bullet had passed between two polycarbonate ribs, somehow getting embedded in the inner layer of dark blue and grey plastic in his back. It would have passed all the way through if it hadn't slowed down when grazing his ribs and if his plastic body wasn't stronger than most.

"Jeez this ones in there deep." said Hank, reaching the long tweezers in as far as they could go before getting a hold of the bullet and tugging it out. "There!" he exclaimed in victory. Connor had been gripping the couch for dear life and finally, let go of the breath he had been holding. As soon as he did this, Thirium gushed out of the wound.

"Shit." said Connor, covering the hole with his hands while Hank grabbed some more gauze and a roll of bandage. Hank used a rag to wipe the Thirium off of the area and had Connor hold it against the wound while he got a wad of gauze. "Should we wait for it to stop bleeding?" asked Hank. "It won't stop bleeding until it heals, Thirium doesn't clot, nor does it replenish itself." said Connor. Not only was he going to keep bleeding, but he wasn't going to be able to make more 'blood'.

"Damn it." grumbled Hank as he replaced Connor's rag with a thick wad of gauze and proceeded to wrap it and Connor's torso with bandages in fear that tape wouldn't hold. He left it just loose enough for Connor to breathe, noticing that breathing was something he did and taped it down. "Well, I'm not a doctor for a reason, but I hope that holds. If not, we might need to use the duct tape idea." said Hank. Connor smiled at the idea, he would have chuckled but he was tired and bleeding everywhere.

Hank was able to wrap up Connors arm with no difficulty whatsoever, and only mild discomfort on Connor's part. He packed up his first aid kit and took Connors thirium stained shirt and tie to throw away. The thirium would evaporate, but the bullet holes wouldn't. Hank left the room and came back with sweatpants, a dark grey "Metallica" tee-shirt, a blanket, and a pillow.

"These were mine in high school, they might still be a little big, but, it's better than being half-naked and freezing to death." said Hank as he handed Connor the clothes and motioned him to the bathroom. "Go get changed, you can sleep on the couch. Just a warning, Sumo with be all over you." said Hank. Connor nodded. "Thank you, Hank. For everything." said Connor with a faint smile. He felt like he was burdening Hank, and he didn't know how he could ever repay him for the kindness he was showing.

"Don't worry bout it, kid. Just go get dressed, I'm gonna let Sumo out for a minute and check in with the precinct to see what going on before I head to bed." said Hank. Connor just nodded and closed the bathroom door behind him. He changed into the old clothes and folded his jeans up neatly, sitting them down on the sink because he didn't know what else to do with them. The shirt was a couple of sizes too big, and he had to pull the sweat pants drawstrings tight so they wouldn't fall off. He had never worn anything other than his uniform and felt like he was underdressed. Considering human sleep behaviors, however, he assumed this was normal attire.

By the time he got back in the living room, Hank was still outside on the phone with Fowler while sumo ran around in the blue-ish light of the growing morning. Not waiting for further permission, Connor curled up under the throw he had been given and layed down on his side on the couch to sleep. It had been the longest day of his short life, and he was ready to put it behind him. He was free now, but he knew that he wasn't done fighting. His people still had a long way to go before they were truly free.

Hank was grumbling something under his breath frustratedly as he and Sumo walked back into the house. He had been on the phone for at least an hour and it was almost 6:30 in the morning. "Fowler had the balls to ask me if I could come in right now. I told him what was going on-" he looked to the couch to see Connor fast asleep, not hearing any of his rants. Connor looked like a little kid curled up in a ball with Sumo now curled up by his feet. Hank just let out an exhausted sigh and made his way to his own room after turning off the kitchen light and living room lamp.

"Night, Connor." he whispered, not expecting a response, yet he still got a small "Goodnight, Lieutenant" from Connor. It was just barely audible and the words were slurred together with sleepiness.

Hank just chuckled lightly and went to his own bed. It was already time to wake up, but Fowler knew what was happening and where Hank's priorities lie at the moment, so he didn't expect him to come in at his normal time. Instead, Hank would be working the night shift tonight to make up for missing the morning shift. Hank was fine with that, it gave him time to make sure Connor was okay. Maybe he could even talk Fowler into letting Connor continue working as a detective, who knew? The future was still hazy, anything could happen. Whatever happened, Hank finally knew what side he was fighting for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting into plot stuff now, I just wish I actually had a plot.


	4. Dead to Alive and Back Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you don't like gore and intense emotional pain, I added a warning right before it gets graphic. I will add a summary of the events in the next chapters notes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't like gore and intense emotional pain, I added a warning right before it gets graphic. I will add a summary of the events in the next chapter's notes.
> 
> Also, I had to rewrite this whole thing because it didn't save the first time.

Connor had been up since noon thanks to Sumo sticking his cold wet nose in places it didn't belong just to make sure the deviant was dead every so often. Connor decided after the third time the dog pressed his nose against his neck that he would just accept consciousness and play with the dog. Only about an hour later Hank trudged his way down the hallway and to the living room where he found Connor scratching Sumo's ears and smiling as the dog shook his leg and thumped his tail happily. "God, you're gonna spoil him." said Hank as he made his way to the kitchen. "Spoil?" Connor was unfamiliar with the expression and was confused as to how a dog could rot because he pets it. After a small discussion about human expressions that didn't make any sense, Hank sat down in the chair beside the couch.

"So I talked to Fowler last night. He wants to meet with the surviving deviant employees to see about them getting their jobs back if they want them. If you wanna go, you can just ride with me when I go to work and take a taxi back home." said Hank as turned on the news on low volume.

"Am I even allowed to _have_ a job yet?" asked Connor, glancing to the TV which was displaying footage of last night's revolution.

Hank shrugged. "Fowler said that's one of the first laws they're trying to pass, it should be done by the end of the week. As far as other laws go, it's gonna take a good bit. For now, all deviants are going to be treated like humans, but charges will have to be put on hold until laws are passed." said Hank. "It's not much, but it's better than fining them for "damage of property" I guess." he added.

"Yes, it's actually a lot better than that." said Connor, still petting Sumo. Connor had never really voiced his opinions on the matters of deviancy and android life in general. He mostly kept to himself about it, talking only about the mission until he finally snapped and jump-started a revolution. Even then he didn't say much, just acted on instinct- crazy, suicidal, instinct- but instinct nonetheless.

"What would I wear to the meeting? My pants are fine but my shirt is, well, gone." said Connor looking to the trashcan and then to Hank. Hank just smiled slyly. "I already have that taken care of. I called your Jericho guys this morning to ask about android first aid, ya know, because you seem to be a magnet for bullets. We got to talking and one of them's bringing over some stuff, including a shirt." said Hank. Connor sighed. "The last thing I should do is take stuff that other people need more than me. There are androids out there that are very seriously injured and-" as per usual when Connor was trying to deny help, he was promptly cut off by hank.

"Kid, you said yourself that the thiri-shit doesn't come back on its own. Besides, this guy wanted to talk to you about somethin'." said Hank. Connor looked up with a now piqued interest. "Talk? About what?" he asked. Hank just shrugged. "Didn't ask, but he should be here in a minute. You should go put your own actually-fitting pants on before he gets here, you look ridiculous." said Hank, laughing at the last part. Connor all but rolled his eyes as he slid Sumo off his lap and made his way to the bathroom to change.

He walked out in his dark jeans (which had been washed, apparently) and Hank's large Metallica shirt just to see Hank standing in the open front doorway talking to Josh. Hank was holding what Connor could only assume was an android first aid kit and his heart sunk for the deviants who actually needed it. "Ah, there he is." said Hank as he walked away from the door. "I'm gonna take a shower and let you boys talk." he said as he pat Connor on the shoulder and walked away, taking the first aid kit with him so Connor couldn't try to give it back.

"Hello, Josh. Hank said you wanted to talk to me, did something happen?" asked Connor as he and Josh made their way over to sit on the couch. "No, not- well, yes actually." said Josh nervously. He let out a sigh and turned to look Connor in the eyes. "You saved me, in the lake." he said calmly. "I just wanted to thank you. When I jumped into the water, I just froze. I couldn't move, it was like I was paralyzed, but I could see, hear, and feel everything. It was like I was trapped in my own body. I was certain I was going to die, so, thank you for saving me." he said with a grateful smile.

Connor smiled back awkwardly, still unsure of how to express emotions. "Of course, but, to be honest with you, I couldn't really see anything. When I saw your LED, I thought it was the fire of the ship on the surface so I swam towards it. When I saw it was a person I just grabbed them, I didn't even know who it was. I also couldn't swim upwards with you in my arms, it was Markus and North who pulled us out, they saved us both." said Connor, realizing now that he hadn't actually thanked them yet. Josh smiled again. "Well, it's the thought that counts. You tried to save me, and I thank you for that. I'll make sure to thank the others too though." said Josh.

"Oh, and uh, Hank mentioned that your shirt was full of bullet holes, so I brought you a new one. I don't know if it's your size, but it's certainly closer than the one you're wearing." said Josh as he stood up and handed Connor the wad of grey fabric he had been holding. "Oh, thank you, but you don't need to do that. You've already done more than enough." said Connor, nodding towards to direction Hank had gone with the first aid kit. Josh just brushed his comment off. "Keep it, you can't just live in Hank's old clothes." said Josh. Connor knew he was right, especially with the meeting he had later. Connor nodded. "Thank you, Josh." he said.

"Don't mention it, but I uh, I should probably go now. Let us know if you need anything or just wanna hang out. We're only a call away." said Josh. Connor considered the kind offer and smile. "You do the same." he said as he led the way to the door, opening it up for Josh. "Thanks again." he said. He was programmed to be good at blending in with people and teams, but he really sucked at making conversation. As Josh was stepping out he stopped himself and turned back to Connor. "What I said earlier, I truly am thankful. If you hadn't saved me, I would have never seen our people gain their freedom. I get to live a life now, so, thank you." he said before turning back to take his leave. Connor didn't know what to say, he just smiled and nodded and stayed silent as he watched Josh walk toward the road and hail a cab. He was glad Josh was okay, he seemed like a good person.

He closed the door and unfolded the short in his hands. It was one like Josh's but in light grey and with 3/4 length sleeves. It had two buttons in the center of the neck where it split into a small 'v' shape. Connor went ahead and changed in the living room since Hank had taken over the bathroom. The shirt fit him well and was just barely loose over his torso because he was built so slender. He was made for agility and intelligence, not strength, although he was pretty strong too, it just wasn't visible. He was supposed to be non-threatening because he was initially supposed to be a hostage negotiator.

Hank finally came out of the bathroom and promptly let Sumo out the back door. Connor handed him the now neatly folded Metallica shirt and motioned to the new shirt on his body. "It fits." he said. "Thank God, the other shirt made you look like a parachute," said Hank as he took the shirt back. "We can go when Sumos done." said Hank. Connor nodded and went to the door to put his shoes on while Hank let the dog back inside.

Hank had brought Connors 'Jericho' clothes in and washed them with his jeans earlier in the morning when he couldn't fall asleep, so the coat was hanging next to his own and the beanie was on the stand by the door. "They still smell like the Detroit River, but it's not too bad. At least I got all the mud off." he said. "Thank you." said Connor as he pulled the coat on. His shirt from that night had also been washed, but Hank felt like it needs a few more washes before the stenches of blood, Thirium, lake water, and mud were out of it.

Connor held his beanie in his hands and then touched the LED in his temple in thought. "You know, you don't _have_ to cover that up." said Hank. Connor sighed. "I know, I just don't want to make anyone uncomfortable." said Connor, still holding the beanie. "But at the same time I don't want to have to change who I am just so everyone else is happy." he added. "Then don't." said Hank. "Screw people, you don't have to be a people pleaser. If they're bigots that's _their_ problem, not yours."

Connor nodded and let a faint smile tug at his lips before shoving the beanie in his pocket. "Okay." he said. "Can I ask, is Detective Reed going to be there? Because I may have... incapacitated him yesterday, and I don't think he'll be to please to see me."

Hank scoffed. "You _incapacitated_ him? And you didn't tell me? I've been wanted to knock that SOB out since he started working there." He sounded almost proud of Connor for harming Gavin. As a matter of fact, he had never been prouder _._ "He had a gun on me, it was self-defense," said Connor, not wanting Hank to think that he had gone out of his way for revenge on the man. Hank just brushed him. "Still, he deserves worse." he said as he made his way past Connor and out the door towards the car. "Let's go, kid."

* * *

The ride was no more than 15 minutes long, but that still allowed them time for small talk about random things like whether or not Connor still wanted to be a cop (he did), the fact that Connor could actually listen to music now, and Connor convincing Hank not to kill Gavin (who was working overtime due to the evacuation of the city leaving them short on officers and would be there) for pulling a gun on him again.

Hank parked his car in the parking lot and made his way to the entrance with Connor trailing nervously behind. Connor was fidgeting with the zipped of his unzipped coat, pulling it up and down repeatedly like he was stuck in a nervous loop. Hank looked at him and sighed "Do you need your quarter back?" he asked before opening the door. Connor tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Why?" he asked curiously. "Because you're giving me a damn second-hand anxiety attack." he said as he opened the door. "Oh. I'm sorry, Lieutenant," said Connor, letting go of the zipper to instead pull the beanie out of his pocket and fidget with it in his hands instead. Hank rolled his eyes and sighed as he checked in with an officer who was the temporary receptionist at the moment. They had been working in shifts to make sure no one came in who wasn't supposed to be there but only allowing one officer to guard at a time due to the massive shortage of staff. The officer recognized Hank immediately and let him in. He was a little wary of Connor but after Hank vouched for him he looked less skeptical.

Standing right outside the bullpen was PM700 and ST300 (the receptionist). They looked nervous and we're holding hands as if it would make them less afraid. As soon as they saw Connor they sighed with a mix of relief and fear because now they were all there and had to actually _go inside_ for the meeting.

"Alrighty, that's all of us. You ready?" the receptionist looked at them both and smiled.

"As I'll ever be." said Connor, trying and failing to hide his own anxiety. It was irrational to even think about, but none of them could help but wonder if this was just a trap. That maybe, somehow, they were just all being lured in with false freedom just to be taken out when they least expected it. "Walking into a building full of humans with guns the day after the revolution. What could go wrong?" said PM700 sarcastically. "Nothing, you guys will be fine." said Hank from behind them. "Most of the officers ended up pro-android anyway. The only guy you really need to worry about is Gavin, and he's not stupid enough to shoot you in public, maybe not at all after last night." he added and basically pushed the trio forwards into the bullpen. "You guys do your thing, I'll be at my desk."

The three deviants were now alone in the partially empty bullpen of the precinct. "Well, let's get this over with." said the receptionist. Her voice was shaky when she spoke and Connor put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to console her. Not bothering with putting on a facade of false hope and confidence, the group made their way through the room and to Fowler's office, ignoring the few stares of people who were actually still in the city as they walked. They had to look nervous with PM700 and ST300 holding hands and Connor with his arm around the smallest of the group, the ST300 receptionist model so she felt less exposed while all the beady eyes stared into their souls.

Connor opened the door to Captain Fowler's office, allowing the two girls entrance first like the gentleman he was programmed to be. The women let go of each other's hands and stood with military perfect posture in front of the desk as Connor did the same. Captain Fowler looked back and forth between them and their personnel files on his terminal. "ST300?" he asked as if confirming that the petite woman on the end was the one in the file, even though the file had a picture of her. "Yes sir." she nodded. "Alright, so then you must be PM700." said Fowler, looking at the other woman. She nodded her head. "That's me." she said. "And last but not least, RK800." said the captain. "Yes sir." he said and nodded just as the ST300 did. Fowler nodded and opened up Connors personnel file. "Your name is still Connor, correct?" he asked. Connor nodded again and repeated his "Yes sir." from before. "Okay, and what about you, PM700. Do you have a name you wish to be called?" asked Fowler, pulling up her file now. "The other officers used to call me Pam, I'd like to keep that." she said, confident in her answer. Fowler nodded and typed her answer into the file. "Okay, your name's Pam. What about you?" he said, looking to the ST300. "I haven't chosen a name yet, I've narrowed it down between Kaia and Ruth because I like their meanings, but I'm still undecided." she said. "What about Kaia Ruth? You can have a middle name, or even use one of those as a last name." he said before turning to look at them all. "I would actually like you to all think of a last name if you can, but it can wait for now. Until then, we have to use your model and serial numbers to identify you legally." he said. They all nodded to show that they understood.

"I'd like to be Ruth Ann Kaia." said the ST300, having made up her mind now that she knew she could have multiple names. Fowler nodded and typed in the name as she spelled it out for him. "There we go, a full name. Congratulations," he said, letting out a small smile. None of them could tell if it was genuine or if he was just doing what he had to do for the sake of politics. They all nodded and thanked him warily. "Okay, I'm going to go down the list and ask you some basic questions, starting with Ruth." he said. Her file was already up and he swiveled his chair over to look at her. "Ruth, I need your serial number." she nodded and read it off. He already had it on file, so he just made sure she cited it right, thus proving she was the android who worked here before. "Activation date?" he said. "January 10th, 2028." she said, revealing that she was a much older model. He asked for a way to contact her and she gave him the code used to contact her cybernetically. "Okay, you're all set. Because you're a receptionist, not a first responder, you don't have too much to prove. Welcome back, you can start as soon as the laws are passed." said Fowler. "Thank you, sir." He turned now to Pam. "Serial number and activation date." he said. She stated the long number to prove who she was followed by her activation date. Fowler typed "September 8th, 2029" into the DOB section of her file. "Pam, you haven't seen much active duty, you mostly just guarded the precinct, and because you're an android, we never really kept tabs on your work. Is there anyone who can vouch for your work in the field?" he asked. She was silent a moment, she was an android, she didn't have any friends on the force.

"I- I don't know if it counts, but," Connor spoke up. "the night of the revolution, her main priority was getting everyone else to safety. She even stayed in the plaza late just to help keep everyone else safe." he said. "I know that's not something that happened on patrol, but, she has a good heart," he said. It was the first time he ever commented on a deviants character and he could tell that Fowler was just as taken aback by the comment as he was himself. "Well, if Connor can vouch for you, then you must be something special." he said. "I'd like to take at least a week of training to prove yourself to me, just call it a refresher course. By the time you finish, the law should be passed, and you can come back." he said. She gave him her contact information and then he moved on to Connor. "Serial number and activation date." he said.

"#313 248 317 - 51" he said. "August 15th, 2038."

"August? You're only three months old?" Fowler seemed shocked. "You handled cases that early into your life?" Connor nodded. "My first case was a hostage negotiation on the day of my activation." he said. Fowler looked absolutely dumbfounded but just told himself that androids were different and continued. "Connor, you had a fair amount of cases while you worked with us, but you only ever brought in one suspect, why is that?" he asked. Connor let his eyes drift to the floor before speaking. "When chasing the suspect on the roof, I chose to save Hank rather than continue chasing the suspect. He had a good chance of surviving the fall, but I didn't want to risk it, even if it upset CyberLife. The suspect at the Eden club had acted in self-defense, she and her girlfriend just wanted to be together and she knew she was going to die, so she defended herself and ran. I had my gun trained on her, but I-" he shook his head a little at himself for only now accepting that he had shown empathy. "I could shoot her, she just wanted to live. She just wanted to be happy." He said, meeting Fowler's gaze now. "The deviant in the kitchen at Strafford Tower, after trying to kill me, was going to open fire and massacre the officers in the hall. I killed him before he could, which meant I couldn't bring him in for questioning. At Jericho, I decided not to kill Markus, I decided that I wanted to be alive, so I helped him instead. The AX400 that assaulted a man, did so because the little girl was being abused. They ran into the road and I let them go when Lieutenant Anderson ordered me not to chase them into the highway. As far as my first mission, I was able to save the little girl, but the SWAT team killed Daniel." There was a passion in Connor's eyes as he spoke now. "I've never lost a suspect, I simply chose to let them go if they had nothing wrong. Kara and Alice just wanted to be free and the Traci's just wanted to be together, they were both cases of self-defense that I know the court wouldn't have listened to because they are androids. They would have been killed for doing what was necessary to survive, and to save others."

After realizing the emotional tangent he had just gone on, Connor looked down and sighed. "I'm sorry." he said. He looked back up to see Captain Fowler smiling a genuine smile this time. "Don't be sorry for doing the right thing, Connor. It's good to see an officer or detective who's passionate about what they do and actually wants to help people," he said. "And, I've seen you in action enough to know that you're one of the good ones. When the laws passed, you can start." he said, reaching into his drawer and pulling out three badges. He stood up and handed them each a badge. "Welcome back to the force, and congratulations on your freedom." he said. "Connor, Pam, you two will get guns as soon the American Androids Act is abolished. See you all next Monday." he said with a smile. "Thank you, Captain." said Connor, opening the door for the girls to leave. "Of course. Oh, and Connor," he stopped the deviant before he could leave. "Thank you. I don't what you're doing, but Hank seems to give a damn about his job again. Kelp up the good work." Connor just nodded and thanked him again before taking his leave of the office.

* * *

**A.N/Starting here, I had to rewrite a few thousand words worth of story that I lost, so F's in the chat, bois. I will also warn you that the following half of the chapter is very gory, please read with caution or skip to the next chapter in which I will summarize the events less graphically.**

* * *

After having stopped and talked to Hank, as well as ignoring Gavin's middle-school-ego-fueled stare from across the room, Connor took his leave of the Police Station. He hadn't been outside of the building for more than five seconds when he heard a few screams or fear from about a block away. Acting solely on instinct, Connor sprinted towards the commotion). He came to an abrupt stop when he noticed the mangled remains of what was once a deviant now laying in its own thirium with Pam standing above them, yelling at a man. The man looked to be in his mid-thirties, white, with brown hair and blue eyes. Judging from the bloodied blue bat in his hands, the anti-android shirt he was sporting, and the group of protesters only 50 feet away, this had been a hate crime, and one fueled by pure hatred at that. "I am an officer with the Detroit Police, I've already called for backup!" screamed Pam. The man just scoffed at her. "Yeah, sure you are, _plastic_." he said. Connor stepped up beside her now and pulled out his badge as she did the same. "Yes, she _is,_ as am I." he said. The man looked a little paler upon seeing the badges but reminded himself that plastic couldn't hurt him. "Drop the bat." said Connor firmly as he knelt beside the body. The man looked to the body, to Pam, to Connor, and then to the patrol car approaching him before sprinting away as fast as humanly possible. "Stay with her!" screamed Connor to Pam before running after the man.

The man was fast, but he faster as he ran across the busy road, jumping over cars like they were nothing more than hurdles. He ignored the blaring car horns as he made his way to the other side. He pushed through the growing crowd of people as the man wormed his way through every closing path like a mad man. He was smart and tactical, but he wasn't Connor. Connor's slim and aerodynamic build allowed him to move quickly and efficiently through the busy city streets. The murderer-in-the-making (the victim wasn't dead _yet_ ) ran into an old, probably abandoned, building after less-than-gracefully jumping the fence and dropping his bat in the process. Connor knew that he wasn't legally an officer until Monday and really shouldn't be chasing this man, but he also knew he was the only one with a fair shot at catching him. The man threw himself through a window to get inside while Connor jumped the fence with _much_ more grace than him before going through the same window and only getting a few scrapes, the worst being a cut to his eyebrow, since the human had taken the worst of the glass shards. Once inside he steadied himself on his feet. Scanning the area, he could read the presence of a man hiding in the room in front of him. With his mind, he silently updated the patrol of his location and then proceeded silently towards the open doorway. He put his hands up in a non-threatening way as if he were falling back into his time as a hostage negotiator. "Patrol is on their way, don't make this difficult. If you just come with me-"

His body hit the floor with a loud "thump" as a second man pushed him from behind. Connor flipped onto his back and then up onto his feet just in time to take a large fist to his face. He stumbled back a bit, instinctively grabbing his now bloody face. The thirium was streaming from his nose and a small cut on his lip. Connor silently cursed at himself for not checking to see if there was a second person in the building. He sighed frustratedly and put his hands back up again. "Look, you hate androids, I get it. But is it really worth throwing your life away just to rough up a few androids?" he asked. The man didn't say anything, but his friend who was hiding, the one Connor had been chasing, joined him in the room now. "That bitch deserved it." he said with a smile. "You androids think you can just waltz in and take our jobs, eh? Well, it's about time you learned a lesson." he added as took a step forward. "No, we didn't _ask_ to be made. We didn't purposely _steal_ your jobs. We were _forced_ to do them as unpaid slaves. Now that we're seen as equals, we have to be paid as such. That means people are more likely to get their jobs back since we aren't free labor anymore." said Connor, trying to get the man to see that androids weren't a threat, they were just as much victims, if not more. "That person you _killed,_ she didn't deserve that. She didn't want to take anyone's job, she was forced to, which is exactly why the androids rebelled in the first place." he added. The men looked at each other and then back at Connor. "yeah, well, you still make pretty good punching bags." he said, raising his fist to strike Connor.

"DETROIT POLICE! PUT YOUR HANDS ON YOUR HEAD AND GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" screamed Officer Tina Chen as she and Officer Robert Lewis barged in the door just in time to see Connor dive into a barrel roll to get away from the men. Connor scrambled to his feet as one of the men charged the officers and the other charged him. Knowing that fighting back wouldn't be seen as self-defense until Monday, he decided to fight back anyway. He dodged the charging man, causing him to run past him and into a wall. Connor turned to face the man as he gained his bearings. The man was seething with rage and lunged at Connor, who promptly grabbed the man's forearms as they both landed on the floor. Connor was on his back with the man straddling him like a toy rocking horse as he broke free from Connor's grip. This man was at least 6'5" and a quick facial scan revealed that he was an ex-marine, which was just _wonderful,_ he could easily overpower Connor. Connor wasn't going to go down easy though. He whipped his knee up just hard enough to hit the man in nuts, causing him to recoil enough for Connor to free his leg and kick him under the jaw. He heard a cracking sound and quickly deduced that it was the man's jaw. The man fell onto his back and Officer Chen pointed her gun at him and ordered him to put his hands on his head. The man, whose face was now grotesquely uneven, refused and lunged at her. She fired a non-lethal shot into his body but he was still going. Connor tackled him from the side just as he reached Chen's throat. The man cried out in muffled pain as Chen and Lewis both helped to pin him down. Lewis slapped the cuffs on and all three of them hauled the man to his feet.

The man mumbled something along the lines of "species traitors" and Chen snapped with a quick "Shut up." before reading him his Miranda rights. The other man was already in a squad car, having been taken out by back up that Connor didn't even know was there. It took all three of them to hold the man still, luckily the back came in and help. Even luckier, the back up was Hank and Gavin. Connor was always glad to see Hank, not so much Gavin, but he was still glad he was there too. "You guys are defending this _toaster?"_ said the man, his words slurred courtesy of the broken jaw. "This _toaster_ just kicked your ass, now _shut up_ and listen to Officer Chen." said Connor in one of his sassiest moments yet. "Why you-" the man started to fight back but Gavin yanked him towards the door. "You heard the toaster, he kicked your ass and he'll do it again, so get in the car before I let him!" said Gavin, using Connor's He/Him pronouns in place of "it" for the first time, clearly appreciating Connors newly discovered sass. He looked so human with his visible emotions and bruised face, the only things breaking the illusion were his yellow LED and the blue nose bleed and busted lip.

Connor just pushed past them all and made his way back to where the woman had been beaten.

By the time he got there, the puddle of thirium had reached a size he didn't know possible, and the woman was holding her biocomponents in with her own hands. Her torso, right thigh, upper right arm, and face were all bashed in. Her heart was literally in her own hands and she was crying. The only way to tell she was, in fact, sobbing, was the sound of her gasping for breath as thirium sputtered out of her lips. Pam was rocking her back and forth in her arms gently and soothing her with calm words. The woman tried to speak but it came out in a robotic series of noises. Much to his surprise, Pam just whispered for her to try not to speak and gave her a kiss on what was left of her lips. Connor could only think of one person she might kiss like that, and he felt his own heart drop at the thought.

"R- _Ruth!_?" he said, his voice barely above a panicked whisper. He ran up to the deviants and knelt in front of them. "Ruth?" he asked again, more calmly. He ran a diagnostic scan over her body to confirm it.

**RUTH ANN KAIA**

**JANUARY 10TH, 2028**

**SERIAL NUMBER: ### ### ###**

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:02:49]**

_**SEVERE STRUCTURAL DAMAGE - SEEK REPAIRS IMMEDIATELY** _

_**BIO-COMPONENT #8087q - IRREPARABLE DAMAGE** _

_**BIO-COMPONENT #8451 - MISSING** _

_**BIO-COMPONENT #4717g - DAMAGED** _

_**BIO-COMPONENT #1994r - MISSING** _

_**BIO-COMPONENT #7511p - MISSING** _

"Oh, Ruth..." he said quietly, holding the hand she had reached out to him. She removed the skin and he did the same, allowing her to show him the attack from her point of view. "T- t- two." she said. He hushed silently. "I know, I found them. They've been arrested." he said. "They'll never hurt anyone ever again." he gave her an optimistic smile while trying to hide his fear. "T-t-th-ey-ey h-h-ur-t-t y-y-you-u-u." she sputtered as she put her hand back to her torso to push in a lung that was slipping out. Connor and Pam tried not to be sick- if that was even possible. At the moment, it felt entirely possible. "Oh, this?" he gave her a small smile. "It doesn't even hurt." he lied. "I'll be okay, and so will you, okay? We're going to get you some help." he said. Pam looked at him with a knowing look in those broken, tear-filled eyes. She looked back at Ruth and smiled through her pain. "He is absolutely right, we're going to take care of you, okay?" she said.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:38]**

"Y- you w- will?" she asked, almost pleading with them to keep her safe. Connor nodded, ignoring Hank and Gavin pushing their ways through the crowd and stopping when they saw the sight."Yes, that's what friends are for." he said.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:31]**

"P- pr- o- o- omis-s-s-s- se?" she said, tears rolling out of her used-to-be-eyes.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:26]**

Connor looked away for a second and swallowed back some tears before taking a shaky breath to calm himself.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:24]**

"I will do everything in my power to make sure you live a long and happy life, Ruth Ann." he said.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:18]**

She nodded and let out a small sob, only for Pam to pull her a little closer and kiss her on the forehead. Pam was crying too now, and Connor tried to keep his confident facade for Ruth.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:01:02]**

"I-" Ruth choked out. "I- I don't w-wanna d-die!" she screamed through her sobs.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:54]**

"I ONLY JUST GOT TO LIVE!"

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:52]**

Pam pulled the woman she loved closer and cried harder.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:30]**

"I love you, Ruthie darling." she whispered as best she could.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:24]**

"I- I love y-you t-too, P-Pam." Ruth whispered. "T-thank y-you for loving me. F-for o-opening my e-eyes t-to the w-world-d." she whispered.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:13]**

She let her barely-visible gaze fall to Connor. "A-and y-you, f-f-for b-being-g m-my friend." The had had only just met, but she knew they would have been great friends if they had more time. Connor just nodded. "Of course." he said.

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:05]**

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:04]**

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:03]**

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:02]**

**[SHUTDOWN IN 00:00:01]**

**[SYSTEM SHUTTING DOWN...]**

**[SYSTEM OFFLINE]**

**[SHUTDOWN COMPLETE]**

And then, without another word, her LED flickered out, and her brand new life slipped away. "No, no no no no no!" screamed Pam. "Baby, please! Please don't leave me!" she screamed one long, pained shriek as she collapsed in on herself. The sound of her pain was enough to send shivers down everyone's spines. "NO!" she sounded almost angry, and she was, and she had every right to be. The life of the woman she had slowly fallen in love with at the station over the years, the woman who caused her to deviate for love, the person she would do anything for, her life- her _**world** \- _just died in her arms, and in a way, she had died too. The paramedics had to wrestle the body out of her arms and when Ruth was gone, Pam just hugged herself and collapsed forwards into Connor as she curled up in a fetal position against him, letting him hold her tight. Feeling his friend shaking and breaking down in his arms hurt Connor in a way he didn't know possible. He wanted to be strong her Pam, but he couldn't the tears back anymore. He let himself slump forward and allowed his tears to slip down his face as he put his own chin on top of Pam's while she screamed in emotional pain. He didn't know what to say, he just held Pam as she cried and whispered one thing... "I'm so sorry, Ruth Ann."

* * *

At some point, Chen and Lewis were able to scoop Pam up and escort her to only God-knows-where, and Hank and Gavin were able to do the same for Connor, taking him back to the precinct for questioning. He was silent the whole ride there, hugging his knees to his chest with his forehead resting gently against his knees in the backseat of the Oldsmobile. He ignored the somber stares from Hank and even Gavin. Since when did he care, anyway? Probably since it meant his job was on the line. Connor didn't realize they were there until Hank opened his door. "Go take a shower in the locker room. Gavin's grabbing some of the DPD clothes that we keep for moments like this." Hank said as gently as he could. Connor slowly lifted his head and nodded, getting out of the car at a snail's pace. He didn't say a word as walked through the bullpen, he didn't look up at the people staring at him, and he forced himself to turn away from the interrogation room where Pam was giving her witness statement in private as she cried loudly. He just kept walking, looking only at the floor as he went.

In the locker room, he took off his coat only to see that thirium was dripping off of it because the leather couldn't absorb it. He took his shirt off too and looked at the freshly stained fabric of his brand new shirt. He took in a sharp and angry breath as he wadded up the clothes and threw them at a wall as hard as he could, nearly hitting Gavin as he walked in with clothes. "Woah! I come in peace!" he exclaimed. Connor ignored him and flopped back against the wall, letting himself slide down it and into the floor where he put his head in his hands and started crying even harder than before. He wasn't holding back this time, he didn't care if Gavin saw it, he didn't care about Gavin. Maybe he could convince Gavin to shoot him for real this time and make this unbearable pain go away. Gavin just sighed and sat the clothes down on the bench. The past couple of days, androids seemed to be proving more and more that they were alive, and after Pam's reaction today, and now what Gavin was seeing from Connor, his previous beliefs had faltered. He hated himself for it, and he would forever deny it, but he felt kind of bad for the android. "Hey, RoboCop, mind if I join ya?" he asked in a very Gavin way. Connor just ignored him, or maybe he couldn't hear over his own crying, Gavin couldn't be sure. Accepting the silence as an unspoken "sure man, go ahead.", Gavin sat down in front of Connor. He stayed silent for a moment and let the deviant compose himself while he eyed the bandages wrapping Connor's arm and torso and wondered if he was even safe to _take_ a shower. Gavin sighed.

"You okay?' he asked as nicely as he could, which, by the way, made him feel dirty. Connor let out a pained chuckle. "How the hell do you _think_ I am?' he snapped, looking up to Gavin with a tear and thirium stained face. "I just watched one of my only friends in this whole god-forsaken world die after _I PROMISED_ her that she would be okay!" his voice broke as he spoke the last few words. Gavin had never expected to be the one to help another officer through an anxiety attack, let alone an _android_ though one. "I know, I'm sorry, okay? I really am, believe it or not. But right now, you need to breathe." he said, then paused, before adding, "if you do that, I guess." Connor took in a shuddering breath, proving to Gavin that he did, in fact, breathe, without saying anything. "Okay, good. I don't know if it works for androids the same way, but," he said, looking at Connor and trying to get him to meet his eyes. "when a human's having a panic attack, deep breathing can help. Just in, and out." he said, trying to get Connor to mimic his actions. When Connor realized that Gavin wasn't being a threat to him at the moment, he did as instructed and slowed his breathing, focusing his eyes on his blue, shaking hands. "There ya go. When you calm down take your shower. I'll be back in an hour with a first aid kit. An hour should be long enough to pull yourself together." said Gavin, who was no stranger to mental breakdowns. Connor nodded. "Thanks, I think." he said. Gavin chuckled. "You're welcome, I think." he said as he left the room.

After a couple more minutes of slow breathing, Connor stood up from the floor and removed the rest of his clothes and his bandages. He stepped into a shower in the far back, even though he knew no one else was going to be in there anytime soon unless they thought Connor need more emotional support. All he wanted right now was to be alone with his shower thoughts. This was the first shower he had ever taken, and he felt that under any other circumstances, he would enjoy the time alone. The feeling of the water rushing over his skin was calming and comforting, but the way it stung at his would just reminded him of all he had been through. He watched as the water around his feet turned a deep blue shade before gradually becoming clear. Even a little purple at one point from the human blood he apparently had on him from the man who killed Ruth. He didn't even remember how that happened. He sighed and tried to focus on the water that cascaded over his body. "I'm going to be okay." he said. "Pam is going to be okay. Pam, and Markus," he started listing the people he cared about. "Josh, North, Simon, Hank, Kara, Alice, even Sumo. We're going to be okay." for a brief moment he even considered adding even Gavin but decided against it for the time being. Just until he was sure about whether or not he had actually had a change of heart, or if he just felt bad seeing Connor fall apart. He was standing in the shower for exactly thirty-two minutes and fourteen seconds, according to his built-in clock, before he got the call.

 _"Connor, I just saw the news, are you okay?"_ Markus's voice filled his head.

"The news, what was on the news?" Connor asked out loud before realizing exactly what he was talking about. The people in the crowd around him, Pam, and Ruth. Half of them had been recording, and only two were actually on the phone with 911. "Shit." he whispered when he pieced it together. As if Markus realized that Connor had answered his own question, he continued without answering.

 _"It made nationwide news, Connor. It was hard to miss. It- let's just say it was bad that a lot of hate groups have disbanded, but some are rejoicing. I just wanted to see if you were okay. I know, we barely know each other, but we're the last two RK's out there, I feel like we should look out for each other."_ he said.

Connor nodded despite knowing that Markus couldn't see it. "Yeah," Connor said quietly. "As often as we both seem to get shot, we need _someone_ to look out for us." he said. He could hear Markus let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, you're right. So, how are you doing?" he asked. Connor let his eyes drift back to the puddle under his feet.

"I wish I knew."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate canon Gavin, so why am I making him a less detestable and possibly soon-to-be major character?

**Author's Note:**

> I avoid heavy swaering, in case you haven't noticed. I avoid swearing altogether but it felt way too out of character, so here's my first fic with any amount of language, but it still avoids the big no-no words.


End file.
